considering getting a light meter

[sonshine_rae]

I don't know if this topic is common or not,
I'll try and do a search about it in addition.

But I've had some people recommend I purchase a light meter, specifically because I'm having trouble with exposures (generally under exposed) in my home studio setup.

I know nada about light meters.... can someone fill me in? Even if you have to send me links to go read? I noticed in a brief search about them that there is a huge price range, which makes me curious how good the low-end ones are and if I should go mid-priced or what??

So confused..
~Rae~

[SkipD]

The Sekonic L-358 (http://www.sekonic.com/products/products.asp?ID=4) is a mid-priced meter that you couldn't go wrong with. It has optional accessories that would let you grow into the future with it without breaking the bank up front.

The L-358 appears to be one of the most popular meters among the serious and semi-serious photographers in this forum.

[TMR Design]

Hi Rae,

As Skip pointed out, the Sekonic L-358 is widely used and well liked. The Sekonic L-308S is also popular, costs a little less, does not have all the features of the L-358 but works very well.

Here are a couple of threads that compare and discuss the two meters.

http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=282314&highlight=358

http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=239772&highlight=358

You can quickly find many more threads by using search terms such as "sekonic", "358", "308", "light meter", etc.

[sonshine_rae]

Thanks for the quick responses and great links.

BTW being that I'm wanting to use this for a studio/strobe situation.. Do I understand this right that I actually 'need' a light meter.. is it true even with a grey card my camera won't meter right because of the strobes? Or will it work with a grey card?

[SkipD]

BTW being that I'm wanting to use this for a studio/strobe situation.. Do I understand this right that I actually 'need' a light meter.. is it true even with a grey card my camera won't meter right because of the strobes? Or will it work with a grey card?Your camera cannot possibly measure light from studio strobes. The built-in meter is only useful for conventional continuous lighting.

You can, of course, use the guess-and-tweak method with the histogram displayed on the camera as a guideline. That is an extremely time-consuming and frustrating way to work, of course. It also does not work to measure the light from individual sources so you can control ratios, etc.

[milleker]

I love my Minolta AutoMeter IVf - they run about $100 used nowadays and it works great for everything I've thrown at it.

[sonshine_rae]

Okay.. so um how does a light meter measure it from strobes? Do you measure it during a flash cycle or what? (sorry newbie to this stuff)

[SkipD]

Okay.. so um how does a light meter measure it from strobes? Do you measure it during a flash cycle or what? (sorry newbie to this stuff)The Sekonic L-358 can be connected to one of your studio flash units with the same cord that would connect the light to the camera. There is a female PC jack on the meter - the same jack that is on a camera (or on a hotshoe-to-PC adapter for those cameras without a PC jack). You push the button on the meter to take a reading and it fires the flash.

Another way is to put the meter into a "cordless" flash mode. Press its button and it waits to "see" the flash go off. You trigger the flash with the camera or whatever method you care to use.

A third (and rather expensive) way is to have a radio transmitter (optional) in the meter and a radio receiver on one or more of the studio flash units. The camera would also need a transmitter for this scenario.

[sonshine_rae]

Okay.. looks like I'll be investing in a meter first.. lenses later then.
Thanks :)! That's what I've been trying to decide, what was needed most, and how well it would work with my setup. Since I am having (obviously) a terrible time getting my exposure's right in the studio, a meter would be a awesome investment right now :).

I need to get my exposure's right, then branch out from there :), into more lens options and fun things.

Thanks again,
*wanders off to read more about light meters..*

[TMR Design]

Hi Rae,

I'd say that's a very good decision. The meter is a very valuable tool in the studio and when using strobes. It's not just a luxury or expensive toy. It will help you to create lighting quickly with no guesswork and no trial-and-error, and ultimately have great exposures.